DEVASTATING NEWS

We got some pretty bad news yesterday and I really haven't known how to share it. Mom has been having a few tests lately, mostly precautionary but it turned out something was wrong. She was diagnosed with bladder cancer. She has a tumor right at the edge of her bladder and ureter. There is a ray of hope in that the doctor told us that if you had to have bladder cancer this was the type you wanted to get. (He told us he is 70% sure he is correct on what type it is. He has to have a biopsy of it to be 100% certain.)He said with this type what they do is go in and surgically remove it and then just keep a close eye on the patient. They don't do chemo or radiation. They don't feel it is necessary. However, this is a type of cancer that tends to come back. He said they look at it like mowing a lawn. They just have to be diligent in keeping up with it. I believe they will want to check her about every three months. This next Tuesday (Dec. 20) she will have surgery to remove the tumor. It will be outpatient surgery unless there are any complications but the doctor told us it will still take her 3-4 days to recover from the surgery. Hopefully, she will feel like being up and around by her birthday on the 24th. We are all really sad. We love our Mom so much and hate for her to have to go through this. We would love to have your prayers for her--and the prayers of any friends or family you can drum up. We are grateful for your love, friendship and support. Please remember my Mom and our family in prayer~~especially on Tuesday if you can. Thanks!